Live Review : D.R.I. + Under The Influence @ Holy Diver, Stockport on July 11th 2026

Holy Diver opened around eighteen months and is offers a spacious rock club located in a former retail unit just off Stockport’s main shopping thoroughfare. Interior wise its pretty impressive with plenty of cool things to look at: gig posters, guitars and records mounted on the wall and a huge stained glass style artwork of Ozzy Osbourne. It’s encouraging to see that so many people have been drawn here on this tropical evening to see San Francisco’s (via Houston) hardcore punk/crossover thrash innovators D.R.I. It’s an early start too to accommodate a rather important football match later on.

Yorkshire punks Under The Influence open up the show with ‘Pipebomb’, a fairly basic slice of hardcore punk but it has a driving rhythm and the vocals add some character. The singer’s voice is shrill, aggressive and shows real attitude. She has a stage presence reminiscent of youth crew hardcore and the screams at the top end of her register are ear-piercing.

Generally, this is hardcore punk in a GBH vein although the drumming is quite percussive which gives it a slight Dead Kennedys feel too. It isn’t all about speed though as they slow it down in a few spots, to varying degrees of success. ‘7 Naans’ has a satisfying slow hardcore groove but the slower part of ‘Dead Babies’ is a bit cheesy and the track only really shows its teeth when they change gears. The persistent and driving ‘Vegan Reich’ is great, and is probably the best song they play. Their brand of punk gets better as the set progresses and is rather good fun. The crowd don’t move too much but they still seem appreciative of their efforts.

D.R.I. are in the midst of a world tour but to be honest, these guys never stop. They haven’t released a new album in thirty years but they are constantly touring. Their ‘80s output was highly influential and still proves to be a draw today. Their early “Dirty Rotten” and “Violent Pacification” releases were played at a speed few had seen before and they arguably influenced many extreme metal genres whilst their later “Crossover” and “Thrash Zone” releases incorporated more metallic elements and helped to establish crossover as a genre.

Their intent is clear as they start off at a relentless pace with the pounding ‘All For Nothing’. Spike Cassidy’s guitar sounds thick and full bodied whilst the rhythm section of Greg Orr and Danny Walker are extremely tight. ‘Manifest Destiny’ continues in the same vein – ripping, snarling crossover thrash. Frontman Kurt Brecht looks to be in good health and sounds great with his bratty punk vocal style which still has some slacker undertones.

When they play fast, it’s at a velocity that few can match. It’s amazing, especially considering they arguably invented this blasting style of playing over forty years ago. Each song merges into the next and the set moves along at a breathless rate. The signature ‘Who Am I’ is still a blur with a memorable hook. It’s so intense it’s almost overwhelming, which probably isn’t helped by the thirty degree heat outside.

With thirty songs and clocking in at over a hour on stage, all of this remorseless speed could outstay its welcome. The fact that it doesn’t is due to all the little variations they add which help to punctuate the otherwise relentless tempo, such as the sludgy Crowbar stomp of ‘Syringes In The Sandbox’ or the hard thrashing ‘Acid Rain’ which has a distinct Leeway feel. The stamina of the band is unbelievable, especially Danny, as the energy required to bring the likes of ‘Mad Man’ and ‘I Don’t Need Society’ to life is immense, and to do that non-stop for a hour plus, wow!

The revenge anthem ‘Five Year Plan’ is the final chance to slam and the crowd reacts accordingly whilst Kurt repeatedly hollers “I win” during the climax.

In his book Crossover The Edge, hardcore and metal author Alexandros Anesiadis wrote “I don’t really care if D.R.I. ever release another record, all I want is to have them touring all over the world until the world is no more” and it’s hard to disagree with him as these songs still deserve to be heard and the D.R.I. live experience feels as vital to life as breathing, eating and sleeping.

Check the “In The Flesh” page for more photos!
D.R.I. + Under The Influence

Writer : Gareth Beckley